When Will You Apply?

There may be several factors which will affect when you apply to college. You are often encouraged to apply in the fall of senior year.  Advantage of applying sooner rather than later?

1. You’ll know an admissions decision earlier in the year.

2. You can spend more time applying for scholarships. Some scholarships require applicants to apply to college by a certain date (usually the early action deadline).

3. Your GPA will not change significantly from fall semester to spring semester. Many students who are not satisfied with their current GPA believe that waiting until spring will be better. Not so in most cases. With one semester, there is no significant change in the GPA unless there is a significant difference in grades (D to A, etc.). You risk missing regular admissions deadlines when you wait, as transcripts will not have fall semester final grades until the end of January. You also stand a greater risk of being waitlisted to the institution, as they might have already filled their spaces.

4. You can better prepare for financial aid needs once you know where you’re going.

5. You can focus on the rest of your senior year and enjoy it!

How Will You Apply?

All students are encouraged to apply online. Applications can be processed quicker and most times you can check the status of your online application through accounts you set up. You should research the following options to determine how you’ll apply. How you apply does not affect an admissions decision; it only reflects your preference for applying.

CFNC – You can apply to many NC colleges and universities through CFNC. This allows you to save time by completing only one application. Note: some institutions will require a supplemental form to be completed in addition to CFNC. Go to www.cfnc.org and click “Apply” to college to get started.

Institution Direct – Seniors can opt to set up a personal account directly with some institutions and complete the individual online application. Students can log back into the account to check the application status and/or find out if there is any additional information needed.

Common Application – The Common Application is a nationwide college application tool that many institutions accept as an application. Go to www.commonapp.org to find out which institutions accept this document. There may be supplemental forms to complete.  Do not forget to set up a student account in addition to using the Common App (ex: Wolfpaw account when applying to NCSU).

Coalition Application – The Coalition Application is similar to the Common Application, as it’s a nationwide college application resource that over 90 institutions accept as an application. Go to coalitionforcollegeaccess.org to find out more about the program and see which institutions utilize it.